Kikiphiasmom

Hello Chargers56, Ok so this is how it all began. This time last year I had made up my mind that I needed the lapband. I made an appointment with my PCP to get a referral. When I started this (Sept 2008) you had to have a BMI of 50 or lower with 2 co-morbidities (diabetes/high blood pressure/sleep apnea ..ext) I only qualified because while I was pregnant with my 2 daughters I became diabetic and have a very LARGE possibility of becoming diabetic. My BMI at the time was somewhere in the 40's. My PCP sent a referral to the OPTIONS bariatric program. In October 2008 I got a call to go to the orientation in November 2008 (they sent me that packet too). At that point when you go to orientation make sure your packet is complete. Then you wait for the classes to start. I had to wait until January 2009. These classes are 6 month classes you go once a week. I think they have changed them so now instead of going to 24 classes you only go to 20. You HAVE to take these classes. There is no way around it. They are VERY beneficial. Anyway ... after you are done with the classes ( I was done June 2009 ) they ask you what surgery you want. They offer RNY/SLEEVE/LAPBAND. They HATE doing the band. Kaiser surgeons will talk you out of getting one. They are taking more out then putting them in. When I finished my classes I was told there would be a 6 month wait to get the band ... again ... here I was having to wait.. BUT to my surprise ... I get a call in August from Kaiser Harbor City that they had openings to get consults. My consult date was Sept 21, 2009. I went and spoke with my surgeon Dr. Zane and he talked about all of the WLS and by this time I had already changed my mind and decided on the sleeve. He was happy with my decision as he thought that this was the best surgery for me. Right then and there he gave me a surgery date October 2 ... I couldnt do it that date so he changed it to October 9, 2009. So there you go. This has been my ordeal ... but I wouldnt change a thing .. if I would have gotten the surgery sooner I would have been stuck with the band, and after hearing all of these stories ... im glad I had to wait. Hope this helps you out. Any more questions on Kaiser ... ask away ... oh and btw .. Kaiser Harbor City is getting the pts from Kaiser San Diego ... :svengo:

UPDATE: So I went to my consultation yesterday (09-21-09) and I got a date. The surgery date is 10/09/09. I'm so excited. I am definitly getting the VSG. He wanted to schedule me as soon as 10/02/09, but I am having a Halloween bday party for my lil girls on 10/03/09. I cant believe its happening so quickly. I am still in shock. My surgeon eased and calmed my fears. Dr. Zane @ the Kaiser in Harbor City rocks. I asked if anyone had ever died on him during this procedure .. he said no and kind of laughed at me... LOL .. he said almost all of his pts who have sedentary positions go back to work within 1-2 weeks. I asked about leaks. He said that as long as I do exactly what he tells me that I should be 100% :thumbup:in no time. He said that the one pt who ended with a leak was a pt that upon discharge, went to KFC to eat .. I was like WTH??? Needless to say she busted a staple and had a leak. Well guys/gals this is my update. I am so excited. Not so scared anymore. Cant wait for the 9th:thumbup:. More stories on your hospital stay and feeling while getting the band are appreciated:biggrin0: Toodles :lol0:

Chargers56, I am a Kaiser pt here in Los Angeles. I went through the 6 month classes through Baldwin Park Kaiser. They request that you lose 10% of your weight by the time you finish the class. Kaiser does do the RNY/Sleeve and Band. They discourage the band though, because there are problems that are arising for the long term pts. But they still do it. I am actually going to my consultation today (09/21/09). I was going to get the band originaly but have now changed my mind and will be asking to get the sleeve. I have heard of some SD pts that are coming down to South bay Kaiser to get the sleeve. Just go through the process you wont regret it. It does take time ... good luck :scared0:

Thank you all for all of the information. I tend to be a hypochondriac (SP?) so I am scared. I know that after the inital consultation it will go pretty fast from here on end. That is what I was told. Thinking maybe the surgery will be scheduled for October. Might be later if the H. Pylori hasnt cleared from my system. They found it on routine labs before my consultation ... arrgghhhhh! :cursing: I just want to get it over with and be on my way to healing and becoming the NEW me. I am so tired of being Fat and on yo-yo diets. Thanks again everyone ... you have helped immensley (SP?):party4:

Thank you so much for your reply. I appreciate any and all info on this surgery. I am on Lapbandtalk.com. I have been a member for over a year. My main goal was to get the band. But now that I am getting closer to my consultation I am really re-thinking the idea of having the band and thinking more and more about the Sleeve. I am so scared though. They are actually cutting into me. I' m SOOOOOOOO scared and it feels so good to read all of your stories. The make me feel better and make me feel like I can actually do this. MORE STORIES PLEASE .. LOL ... and again ... THANK YOU for all of the detailed information. :thumbup:

CONGRATULATIONS!!!! :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: While you get your surgery, i will be at my consultation to get a surgery date. I wish you the best of luck ... as well to me :thumbup1:

Thanks VegasAngel. I am so happy that I found this forum. I am on the lapbandtalk.com forum as well. I was truely considering the band, but now that I have read all of these horror stories and how the band in the long run did not work, made me change my mind. I am still debating which to chose since 2 of my cousins have the band and are doing great. But I am leaning towards the sleeve now that my consultation is this Monday (09/21/09). I called Kaiser and they told me that the people who are going in for the band are coming out with the sleeve. I am so nervous and i know I am rambling on but words of encouragement and hearing peoples stories (fishing here ..lol) is what I need. Thank you all for welcoming me ... MORE stories please? Anyone have it done at Kaiser? How was your experience? Pain level? How long where you out? VegasAngel - 1 week? Not bad .. I can do that. LOL ... whats the mortality rate? Is it the same as the RNY? Thanks again ... :thumbup:

Thank you so much for sharing. I am new to this forum as my first choice was the Lap Band. Now that I have been reaserching things more, I think the sleeve would be a better fit for me. My questions is how long is the down time? I am a single mom with 2 kids (4 and 7). So you can imagine how I need a speedy recovery. How long is the surgery? How long are you under? The anasthesia is what scares me the most. Any and all input would be greatly appreciated. Kaiser Harbor City ( Los Angeles) is doing my surgery and I finally have my consult this Monday (09/21/09) I am so nervouse and anxious at the same time. I have been in the process for OVER a year. Thanks again ... :thumbup:

I think they still are doing it. I have my consultation this Monday 09/21 at the Harbor City Location. I finished my classes in June. I know they said it was a 6 mnth wait, but I think they opened more clinic days or got some cancelations so I got called. Only waited what ... 3 months. ... not bad! Good luck:thumbup:

I think they still are doing it. I have my consultation this Monday 09/21 at the Harbor City Location. I finished my classes in June. I know they said it was a 6 mnth wait, but I think they opened more clinic days or got some cancelations so I got called. Only waited what ... 3 months. ... not bad! Good luck:thumbup:

Hi CLB825, The RNY is simply not for me. I am a single mother of 2 young children, and it simply would be to major of a surgery/recoup time. Also, I have family members who have had the band and can be a support system. None have had issues (thank god) and have lost HUGE amounts of weight. I am not ready for the risks assiciated with the RNY either. The band seems safer and more of a TOOL for me. Its slower weightloss. UPDATE: I have recieved a call from Kaiser Harbor city and got a consultation date for Sept 21. I am so excited as I though this would take much longer. I hope this is good luck as this is also my youngest daughters birthdate. My consultation is with Dr. Zane ( HEADHUNTER) knows him well. I just hope that I can convince him that the Band is what is right for me. The other procedure I would consider would be the sleeve. Still have to do some homework on that one though. Good luck to all. :thumbup:

I went through Baldwin Park as well. Well actually I attended classes in West Covina, but the same difference. I just finished the 24 week classes in June. I am also doing the Lap Band and WILL NOT consider the RNY, even though most of my class was doing that one. The only facility presently doing the Lap Band is South Bay (Torrance/Harbor City). UCLA does the RNY and Sleeve and Pacific Bariatrics only does the RNY. The wait time for Pacific Bariatrics is only 6 weeks. Ucla is 2-4 months and South Bay is 5-6 months. I know I am probably repeating what you wrote, but I have a cold and didn't finish reading.. lOL .. Good luck to all. I get to call South Bay in November for a consultation .. Here's to waiting .. Good luck all!!

Thank you so much for being so open about your ordeal. What a shame about the bad experience you had with the band. I will ask to see Dr. Zane. I'd hate for him to discourage me from the band. I have several family member that have it and have done wonderfully on it. Bypass is not an option for me, its just to drastic for me that is. I have several friends who have had the bypass and look wonderfull but then there are the other few who are difficient in EVERYTHING now and look horrible. But I guess all of these WLS surgeries have their good outcomes and bad. Again thank you so much for the info. :party:

WOW, thank you so much for this information. Can I ask, what went wrong wit your band?

Hello You are the second person to tell me that about the Harbor City location. It might be that they are telling the newer classes this, because the wait time is so far out (4-6 months) I have already signed my releases and have gotten the paperwork for the Harbor city Kaiser for Lap Band. I only have 3 more classes left. I know that Pacific Bariatrics in San Diego is in process to get approved to do the lap band for Kaiser, so by the time you get done this might be an option for you. Just continue with the classes I am sure that it will be available for you by the time you finish .. good luck and learn as much as you can. It is so worth it and you will be on the fast track to losing the RIGHT way.

That is so great that you were able to get the band. I have already chosen the facility and will be done with the classes in 2 weeks. Maybe things have changed since you went through the referral process or it might just be that each facility can referr only a certain number of pts, but 3 of my classmates and I have been (will be referred) to Harbor City for the Band. So as of today Harbor City is doing the band, but you are right the wait time can be up to 4 months. But they are doing it. The wait time for UCLA is 8 weeks and they only do the Sleeve and RNY. Pacific Bariatrics in San Diego's wait time is 4-6 weeks and they only do the RNY, but are in talks with Kaiser to start doing the Band as well. This is the information that was just given to us at my last class which was last Thursday 05/21/09. Just an FYI for those of you asking. I know that alot of centers are missinformed. The Kaisers here in So cal are all messed up. But I have already waited a year, whats another 4-6 months for my band, especially since I cant afford it any other way. Good luck to you all!!

If the idea of taking the "hunger" sensation away is what you are looking to get, you might want to think about the sleeve instead of the band. I have heard from people that have had the sleeve done, that they cut off the part of your stomach that creates the hormone that tells your brain that you are hungry. I dont recall the name of this specific hormone, but it starts with a G. I think that even with the band you get hungry, you just cant eat as much, and you have to learn the proper things to eat and stock up on Protein. This is really just an FYI. It's kind of sounding like a lecture ha? LOL .. but that Is what I have heard ... good luck

That is NOT true! I am currently going through the Options program through Kaiser Baldwin Park. Yes they do emphysis strickltly on the bypass. That is their gold standard. But Kaiser does pay for Lap Band/ Sleeve and RNY. Just get referred to your options program and start the classes. The surgeries are performed by UCLA = RNY and Sleeve Pacific Bariatrics/San Diego= RNY only Kaiser Harbor City = Lap Band only. Good luck and be persistent!!!

Ok so this is what I have been told so far, now that we have to decide where to go. UCLA - only does the RNY and SLeeve (wait time 2-4 months) Pacific Bariatrics/San Diego- only does the RNY ( they are working on getting the OK to do Lap Bands for Kaiser, they do them, just not for Kaiser) (wait time 4-6 weeks) Kaiser Harbor City- Only does the Lap Band (wait time 4-6 months) I was debating about the SLeeve as well. I dont think I want such an invasive procedure. The good thing with Kaiser is that if for some reason the Lap band becomes eroded or something happens with it, they allow you to get another type of bariatric surgery be it the RNY or Sleeve. Both my cousins have had the lap band and have done wonderfully so i am sticking to that one. Plus if for any reason we start eating like heifers again with the sleeve you can streatch your stomach and then youre in the same boat again. Girl you have a tough choice. Good Luck,

Hello Ms Boopie .. it's been forever!! I'm almost done. My last class is on June 18th. YAY .. I already signed up for the lap band at the Harbor City kaiser. The only bad thing is that the wait time is 4-6 months to get it there. But they are the only one's doing it. Also they did the pre-op test and I was Vit D defficient and H.Pylori positive. .. can you believe that. Well I'm done with the nasty meds, and have to be re-checked on June 14th. I am so happy to hear that you have lost most of your weight. I am stuck at 15lbs lost. I have 12 more to go and cant seem to take them off!@!!! Its so frustrating!!

I am so sorry Kaiser denied you. Your BMI must have been on the lower side. If you have Southern California Kaiser I know your BMI has to be 50 or 35-40 with 2 co-morbidities. I know this because I am in the Options Program right now going through Kaiser so. cal. Both my cousins had the Lap Band done in Tijuana, Mexico with a Dr. Ariel Ortiz and they ADORE him. They rave about how professional and how clean the hospital was. They said that the hospital was better looking then then ones here in the states and that they have all this high tech equipment. I am only going by what they have said to me. They are very happy with their results and I think they only pay $100.00 per fill or for a couple of them. I think that they only paid like $7500.00 for their bands/procedures and hotel and hospital stay and I think the hospital took care of booking everything. I dont know the name of the hospital but I am sure you can google his name and something should pop up. If there is no other way, then Mexico might be the right place for you. But dont go to far away stay as local as you can (TIJUANA or MEXICALI). Good luck, and I know how important it is to have people on your side. Take care

First of all, do you have Kaiser? Every insurance company has different policies. If you do have Kaiser Southern California it is a LONG process but VERY worth it. This is how it goes: 1. See your primary doctor and get a referral to the Options Program. 2. The requirement for us (I go to Kaiser Baldwin Park) is that you must have a BMI of 50 or over with NO co-morbities or 35 and over with at least 2 co-morbidities. Basically 2 health risks like sleep apena, diabetes, High blood pressure ect ... but since you are so young, you might only qualify if your BMI is high enough. 3. Someone from the Options program then calls you to go to an orientation. Everyone gets to go to this, it does not mean you were accepted. The time frame on this varies with location. Your wait time can be from 1 week to a couple of months. 4. You go to orientation and they talk about the Gastric Bypass only. Kaiser does do the sleeve and lap band, but only concentrate on the bypass!! This kinda sucks, but ok. Before or during your orientation you have to fill out a packet with alot of personal questions. I think they do this to see if you will need a shrink along the way. 5. Once you are accepted into the program (they let you know pretty soon) you wait to start the Options Program. I waited only 2 months, because 2 people dropped out and I was next on the wait list, but I hear that the wait time is 4 months and up. 6. You start the options program that last 24 week. Which is 6 LONG months. Again they only concentrate on talking about the Bypass in these classes and teach you how to count calories and Proteins and get inside yourself. Again I think to see if you need a shrink. If you miss a class you will have to make it up in order to qualify for surgery. ..... I dont know what comes after this as I am only 1/2 way done with the program. Will be done in June 2009. So hopefully the surgery is shortly after that. Hope this helps out a little. Good Luck!!

Hello all. I am a southern california Kaiser pt. And YES its true. Your BMI has to be 50+ or if less you have to have co-morbidities. You also have to do 6 month classes. I began this whole process with Kaiser in September 2008when I was referred then went to orientation in November 2008 and started the classes in January 2009. Its a long process, but its totally worth it. They show you how to count calories and Protein and it will help you suceed in the end. Good luck all. I will be done with classes in June. Wish me luck!! ~M